MSW Foundation Program

At the most basic level, social work involves helping people address struggles in their lives. 

Social work is a vast field, which means there are numerous opportunities based on your interests or passions.  Some people enter social work already drawn to a specific population or issue, whereas others develop an interest through their coursework and field experiences.  Social workers can help with difficulties, transitions or struggles from birth to death and at any point in between.

Some areas of social work practice include (but are not limited to):

• Aging Services/Gerontological SW
• Children and Families
• Child Welfare
• Criminal Justice System (i.e. probation, parole, corrections, public safety, juvenile justice)
• Crisis Intervention
• Disability Advocacy & Support Services
• Domestic Violence
• Education (early childhood, K-12 schools, colleges, and universities)
• Employment/Vocational Services
• Housing Access & Services
• Human Rights
• LGBTQ+ Services
• Lobbying & Policy Advocacy
• Medical SW (including hospitals, clinics, midwifery services, etc.)
• Mental Health Treatment
• Military/Veteran Services
• Non-profit Management and Administration
• Program Evaluation
• SW Research
• Substance Use and Addictions Treatment
• Victim Support Services

Not only are social workers employed in a variety of settings, but they work at different levels of practice, including:

• Micro level (direct practice):  Micro level practice involves direct interaction with clients to cope and address their problems.  This is the most common type of social work practice and is offered in a variety of settings.
• Mezzo level:  Mezzo level social work involves working with groups, which runs the scale from working with family units, groups, organizations, and communities.  Social workers frequently work across both the micro and mezzo levels within the same job. 
• Macro level:  Macro level social work is larger scale, and involves interventions, policy work, and advocacy at larger scale levels, including communities, states, and countries.  Macro social work can include activities such as grant-writing, activism, and crafting policies or laws.